Enrichment reading: the history of navigation

World Ships, 1460
Originally uploaded by trudeau

Enrichment reading: the history of navigation

The first record of boats large enough to carry goods for trade is around 3500 B.C., says boatsafe.com, and this would mark the birth of the art of navigation.These first navigators stayed close to shore and navigated by sight of landmarks or land characteristics that they could see. Usually they traveled by day and sought a calm harbor or anchorage at night. They did not have charts but lists of directions, similar to today’s cruising guides.

When they did venture out of sight of land, the navigator was able to determine his latitude (north/south direction) by observing the height of the sun during the day and the North Star at night.

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